


Touch

by awkwardocalypse



Series: Overcoming Boundaries [1]
Category: Fire Emblem, Fire Emblem: Kakusei | Fire Emblem: Awakening
Genre: Angst, Comfort, Cuddles, Cute, F/M, Fluff, Hugs, Hurt, I hope, Kisses, Libra is trying really hard to get over his problems with direct intimacy, My headcanon is that Robin has probably had some fun sexytimes with the Shepherds for funsies, NAGA HELP ME, Not Chrom, Physical Contact Issues, Romance, Sprawling over settees, Supportive Robin, body issues, cute kissing, hes a blushing virgin disasternado and hes adorable, lol, romantic, talking about sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-24
Updated: 2018-07-24
Packaged: 2019-05-28 23:05:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,469
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15059789
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/awkwardocalypse/pseuds/awkwardocalypse
Summary: Libra struggles with being touched.  Fortunately, he has a very understanding wife who's there to help him through it.  Fluffy Robin x Libra.  Emotional.  Maybe some hurt/comfort?  Talking about sex but no actual smuttiness.  Rated just for safety's sake.  There are snuggles.





	Touch

**Author's Note:**

> So, this is like. My first real Fire Emblem fanfic ever? I think? I'm so out-of-practice writing. Especially writing cute things in general. @_@ Awakening because I am Awakening trash. My friend got me into this pairing and now it's my OTP. 83 I love these adorbs.
> 
> Got the inspiration for this after reading Libra and Nowi's B-support and thinking, "Oh hey, Libra has issues being touched. That gives me a cute little story idea!" I hope it's cute. I don't know what im doing lololol 83

' _OW!_ '

'I'm sorry!'  Robin quickly slammed a hand over her mouth to stifle her own shocked laughter, shuffling awkwardly up to sit on the other side of the settee and onto a suspiciously hard cushion.  'I'm sorry- I-  _pfft_ I'm really... really sorry I-I didn't, _snort_ , see you there-'

' _Ow_ , gods, I- just... I'm fine!'  Libra called out, smashing back into consciousness and desperately trying to reassure his wife that all was well.  'I'm fine, quite fine, just... legs.  _Off_ , please.'

'Oh, right!  Sorry.'

The tactician awkwardly sprung to her feet, allowing Libra to dig his legs out from under her and sit down properly.  Once he was done rearranging himself, she took her place next to him.  He leaned over, rubbing his eyes and yawning.  'Wha- _aaahh_ -hat happened?'

'I don't know...'  Robin grumbled, resting her head against the back of the furniture.  'I think I fell on you.'

' _Truly?_ '  A playfully sarcastic chuckle escaped Libra's lips.  He made a warm little humming sound as he snuggled back into his corner of the settee.  'What makes you think so?'

' _Mnn~_ '  Robin replied by lazily sticking her tongue out at him, then stretched out her arms, fingers stretching out for supports that weren't there, and collapsed onto her husband once more.  As her head fell neatly into his lap, she started to close her eyes, quite content to drift off into dreamland there.  Then something quickly crossed her mind.  Something she should have probably been conscious about sooner.  She raised her head up, about to move, but a gentle hand came to rest on her shoulder, stopping her.

'It's all right,' the priest reassured her.  'You don't have to.'

She laid her head back down, eyes closing as her partner's hand brushed gently through her hair.  'You sure...?'  Her voice was a murmur, soft but cautious.

'I'm sure.'  Libra's hand moved up to her head, fingers slowly spiraling her scalp.  A brief shiver went down his spine when she nuzzled reflexively against him, pushing herself a little closer into his body.  'It's all right.  It's _quite_ all right.'  He said as much to himself as to her.  Taking a deep breath - then another, and one more for good measure - he started to recline back into the settee, and turned back to his wife.

'So!'  He finally broke the silence.  'What's tuckered you out quite so much?'

'No... ... e horsey.'

'What?'

'Nowi made me be horsey...!'  Robin moaned, wafting an arm about as if trying to swat an invisible fly.  'For _three hours_.  And I had so much work to do after and I'm so tired and she wouldn't leave me alone and I tried so hard not to shout at her...'

Libra stifled a second laugh at the thought.  'Yes, that would do it.  I'm surprised she roped you into it, though.  I didn't think you two were that close.'

'I don't dislike her, if that's what you mean,' Robin looked up, slowly opening her eyes.  'I just... lately I try not to spend more time than I have to with her.  I'm so busy and she's not a bad girl, she's just...'  She twirled her outstretched hand about lazily in a futile attempt to grasp the most appropriate word.

'... "Exhausting"?'

' _Yes._ '  Robin sighed, her arm dropping to the ground as she rolled her face into her husband's lap.  'Once she got off last time I had to trip myself up with a wind spell to get an excuse to go to the healers and once I got them to let me out I went back to our tent and she and Ricken were in there and they were playing with my swords and I had to make them _stop_...'

'Breathe, Robin.'

The tactician sighed, eyes closing for good as she snuggled against her husband.  'Didn't wanna yell...'  She mumbled.  'Y'never look good... yelling at kids.'

'Just pretend they're Chrom walking in on you.'

That caused Robin to snap  _quite_ awake, sitting bolt up right as her body shook with giggles.  'Rude!'  She covered her lips with a hand, stifling her growing laughter.  'And you did  _not_ hear about that.'

'Love,  _everyone_ has heard about that.'  Libra returned her laughter.  'Frederick drilled us for a good hour about appropriate bathing hours.'

'That... absolutely sounds like something he would do, actually, but then... how did _Frederick_ know?'

'Robin, please, you know Frederick.'  The priest leaned forward, brushing a few strands of falling hair out of his face.  'And you know that if the Commander so much as sneezes, Sir Wary will smother him in blankets and confine him to the healers' tent for a month.  To say nothing of those "morale-lifting pictures."'

The usually-composed strategist broke down in a roaring fit of laughter.  Truth be told, she'd forgotten those posters.  Or, rather, she'd done her very best to forget them.  Chrom was a wonderful man - endearing and handsome, perfectly awkward and adorable in equal measure - but he was also her dearest friend.  Even though Robin wasn't shy about finding her friends attractive, Libra had even teased her for letting her eyes wander after Miriel took up Sorcery, her bond with Chrom was more... _familial?_  It was hard to pin down, exactly.  Whatever it was, though, it had ensured that her immediate reaction to seeing naked pictures of him all over camp was to cover her eyes and invoke the gods' names in all the most colourful ways she could think of.

'Grima's scaly arse, _why_ would you remind me of _that?_ '  Robin playfully threatened to swat her husband.  'But, true...  Honestly, I'm still surprised that  _he_ didn't confess his undying love after Gangrel's fall.'

'I imagine he would have, had Sumia not beat him to it.'

They snuggled back down together; Libra lying down across the settee, Robin sprawling uncharacteristically inelegantly on top of him.  Her half-open eyes drifted over her man, towards a heavy-looking tome sitting on the floor beneath them.

'Your book?'

'Mhm.'

'What were you reading?'

'History,' Libra explained.  'A chronicle of the wars preceding Valm's unification.'

'Ka'ga's work?'

'No, this is more recent,' the priest reached down and picked up the book, shuffling back onto the furniture so that he could sit up a little better.  Robin moved herself, allowing him room to re-position himself.  He looked over the thick red cover, instinctively brushing away dust he knew wasn't there.  'It's called  _The Shadows of Valentia_ , by Ku'saki and Na'ka.'

'Hm.  More Chon'sin names.  Seems Say'ri's people have a reputation for chronicling history.'

Libra nodded.  'A fellow cleric told me, for all Ylisse's great histories, the most-respected come from Chon'sin.  She couldn't tell me why, though.  I'd be quite fascinated to learn.'

'Feels like we're picking up a lot of Chon'sin knowledge lately...' Robin mused, taking the book from her husband and leafing casually through the first few pages.  'Remember that manual on "Dread Fighting" we found in the Outrealms?'

The priest's face suddenly reddened, his eyes sinking to the floor.  ' _That_ was Chon'sin...?  Gods be god, I must apologise to Say'ri.  I'd  _honestly_  dismissed that as one of Owain's... what's the word?'

'Fantasy books?  Nah, the title would need at least four more adjectives.'  Robin laughed, turning carefully back to Libra with a blush of her own creeping across her cheeks.  'Okay, to be honest?  I thought the same thing 'til she explained it to me.'

'At least he took to it well.'

Robin nodded, slowly setting the book back down on the ground as she adjusted herself.  She leaned back against the other side of the settee, keeping her eyes on Libra.  'Speaking of Owain...' she began, her tone more serious but not especially grave.  'I heard another story from him the other day.'

'You did?'

She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and re-focused on her husband.  Her lips spent a second trembling before she finally forced herself to say, 'We have a son.'

Libra's reaction was far brighter than she'd ever expected it to be.  His brilliant, beaming smile proved contagious and, soon, the couple was laughing and holding each other's hands; Libra squeezing Robin's with childish glee.

'I-  I am.  This is...  Robin, love, that's  _amazing_.'

'Oh, thank the gods...'

'Yes!  I just-  Yes.   _Gods_ , I-  I don't really know what to say.'

'He didn't say much,' Robin continued.  'His name's Morgan, he's a little younger than the others, but- but... he's _ours_.'

'I know,' Libra gave his wife's hands another little squeeze, his smile no longer quite as manically happy but still full of warmth and love.  'It's a good omen.'

'What do you mean?'

'It means I must be all right with...'  He stopped himself, biting his lip and struggling to keep his eyes on her.  'W-With getting... closer to you.'

Robin nodded.  She wasn't sure what else to do, really.  Her marriage to Libra was, as far as she was concerned, the best thing that had ever happened to her.  He was the perfect gentleman, a sweet, scholarly, and sensitive soul who always listened to her, always respected her.  On and off the battlefield, she'd found herself relying on his strength and he had learned to place the utmost trust in her wisdom.  That's why he'd been able to confide his past in her at all.

He'd shown her his scars his mother had left one evening after a particularly grueling battle; one that had left them weak, weary, and wounded.  They tended each other's wounds and Robin had begun panicking after seeing how some of his marks wouldn't fade.

 _'My family's last gift,'_ he'd confessed, eyes dark and brow heavy.   _'Don't worry about it.'_

Of course, she  _had_ worried about them.  Libra had never been the most physical of men.  He could hold her hand, he could kiss her, he could hold her in his arms.  Most of the time.  Anything more than that, however, had been a struggle.  Direct contact didn't come easily to him.  They'd only reached the point they were at through many months of communication.

He'd begun opening up to her about his problems, with being close to others and allowing them to touch him, and she had been willing to listen.  She wanted to give him the same respect he'd always shown her.  However, even she hadn't realised _quite_ how badly he was hurting until their wedding night.  It embarrassed her to admit that she'd gotten a little  _too_ wrapped up in the festivities, drunk one or two cups of wine more than she should have, and dragged her new husband off to their chambers after night fell with every intention of bringing all the fantasies she'd kept inside 'til then to life.

That night, Libra had seized up, screamed at her to get away, and slumped down into a corner of the room.  Her heart shattered.  She fell to her knees, completely overrun with guilt, unable to do little more than sob and tell him how sorry she was.  They awoke in the morning half-dead on the floor with tear-stained faces and it wasn't long until they were crying and apologising to each other all over again.

So, from that point forward, they talked.  More than they ever did.  Every now and again, they would sit down, discuss where they stood, and how comfortable Libra felt.  By now, he was used to her enough that they could share a bed and she'd sometimes wake up with his arms wrapped tightly around her.  Sex, however, was still a bridge too far.  The furthest they'd gotten was kissing naked, with Robin softly rubbing his manhood, but long before Libra could finish he'd seized up and started shaking again.  He'd told Robin she could keep going  _if she wanted to_ and that had prompted her to stop immediately.  Because, to her, it wasn't about what she wanted.  It was about what  _they_ wanted.  She could never forget the pain and remorse she'd felt on their wedding night because she let her drunken desires get the better of her.  She was absolutely _not_ going to repeat the same mistake while completely sober.

That night had been a long time ago and Libra's unwillingness to try again had made her wonder if, perhaps, her husband simply wasn't interested in sex.  He'd always waited for her to raise the subject, after all.  However, he hadn't ever told her explicitly that he wanted to  _stop_ trying.  Was he just being brave for her sake?  The thought made her wretch.  Feeling those painful memories welling up inside again, Robin forced herself to take a deep breath before continuing the conversation.

'We...'  No, she couldn't find the words.  So, she took another.  And then a third, just for good measure.  'We...  We might've adopted.'

Her husband nodded.  'We might have.'

It was a possibility.  Not one that could be discounted, if they thought about things logically.  In fact, it seemed very probable.  Of course, logic and probability rarely factored into immediate responses.  Libra was now taking his turn to breathe deeply, hands shaking at the realisation that sex  _might_ just be closer than he thought.  Honestly, he didn't really know what to think about that.  Despite a quivering lip, he forced himself to smile.

'I... hope it won't be terrible.  For you.'

'Li-'

'I'm not...'  He swallowed hard, trying to find the right words.  Silence filled the space between them, and his thumbs began to gently move against the skin of her hands.  Was he trying to express something he was struggling to find the words to say, or was he trying to find a new way to vent his natural urge to tense up?  Maybe he wasn't sure what he should be feeling himself.  Maybe that was why he'd started letting out the world's most forced laughter.  '...  _Good_... at this.   _Hah_.   _Hah hah._   S-So, d-don't blame me if I'm not as good as you're used to.'

' _Libra_.'

 _That_ had upset her.  She didn't enjoy watching him make terrible jokes like this at his own expense.  It wasn't in his nature to begin with, so his doing it always told her that something was wrong.  Furthermore, there was a fine line between laughing at oneself and just being unnecessarily harsh.  When it came to discussing sexuality, Libra was  _always_  guilty of the latter.  It upset her, listening to him criticise himself like this, to compare himself to people he had no need to compete against.

'Libra.'  Robin repeated his name, raising a hand towards him.  It hesitated in the air until he nodded, a silent sigh of consent, before coming to rest on his cheek.  'Please, listen to me.'  She stroked his face slowly, simply trying to calm him down.  'Viri, Sully, Gaius, Cordy-'

' _Cordelia?_ '  He hadn't heard that story before.

'Agh...' Robin screwed up her face, trying very hard not to dwell too long on past mistakes.  'It wasn't like the others, and it was long before she and Lon'qu got together.  I was lonely then, she was sad about Chrom, we weren't thinking, emotions were messy and... and... it was just...'  She forced the awkward memory out of her mind and moved on as quickly as possible.  'Look, not all sex is good sex, okay?  No, I mean... whatever, not important anyway, just... I don't _love_ them, okay?  I fooled, I had fun, but Libra?'  She bowed her head towards him, mostly because she didn't want him to see how misty her eyes were getting.  A prideful mistake, perhaps, but the way she saw it this moment was all about making him understand that he was  _not_ wrong.  That there was  _nothing_ wrong with him just because he was finding sex difficult.  That she loved him for who he was.  Warts and all.

'I didn't marry any of them,' she forced the words out, trying extremely hard to keep up her smile.  'I married  _you_.  And, I promise, I'll do whatever I can to make this work.  Because I love you.  So, please... _stop_  being so hard on yourself.'

Robin felt her husband's hand come to rest upon her own.  He leaned into it, nuzzling against her skin.  'I love you, too.'  His voice was weak but sincere.  She was getting through to him.  'I just...  I just  _wish_ things were different.  I wish I could be better about this.  For you.'

The tactician gave a sad little sigh, wiping her eyes.  'Libra, look.  I want to, you know I do, but... if you really,  _really_ don't want this, I'm not going to push you-'

'But I do!'  He blurted out, face turning redder than ever.  'I...  Gods, I do,  _I want you_.  I want this, I do, I just...'  He swallowed again, quickly brushing his brown a few times and nervously playing with his own hair.  'I- It's not- not that I don't want you, I do.  I'm just... struggling.  But I do.'

'You're starting to ramble a bit there, love,' Robin giggled, a truly happy smile starting to form on her face.  Now she knew for sure she wasn't the only one who wanted this.  She wasn't sure she'd be able to forgive herself if she'd made Libra feel like he'd been forced into sex but here he was, telling her that he wanted it as much as she did.  Well, perhaps not  _as much_ but he was far more eager than he'd let on before.

Robin brought up her other hand to his face, held his head in both, and pulled him in for a gentle kiss.  As their lips parted, she leaned forward; her forehead meeting his.  She just held him there for a moment, letting them both calm down and regain some measure of composure.  'Tell me what you want,' she pecked his lips again, then once more on a cheek.

'This.'  Libra replied.  'I want _this_.  I want... to feel your hands on my skin.  I want to hold you tighter than this, with nothing getting in the way.'

'Like clothes?'

' _Love-_ '

'Sorry, I shouldn't tease you.'  Robin let go of his face and wrapped her arms around him.  'Go on.'

The priest pulled his wife closer against him, then stopped for a moment.  He breathed slowly, fighting the urge to break contact.  'I want you,' he repeated.  'I want to hold you.  Every part of you.  I want to make you feel good.  I want to be the best I can be for you... for me, too...  You fill my mind with  _so many thoughts_ but it always feels like they're locked up in a chest.  Then, every time someone gets close, it feels like someone's throwing away the key.'

His wife replied with an understanding nod.  She gave him another kiss on his cheek, murmuring thanks into his ear, before starting to slowly push down on him.  They sank back together on the settee, trading chaste kisses as their arms tightened around each other.

'Normally, when people get too close, I'm a child again,' he continued.  'All I can think about is how much I  _don't_ want them anywhere near me.  And I don't know how to make it stop.'

'I'm so sorry,' Robin looked up at her husband, starting to run her fingers through a few locks of his hair.  'But, Libra?  There's nothing wrong with you.  So... please don't ever worry that you're not good enough, all right?'

He nodded.

'I might not understand everything,' she confessed.  'But I do think I understand why it's taking you so long to talk about it.  It's clearly still hurting you.  So, until you feel you can share everything, I'm just going to say that I'm glad you've told me what you can.  And, if you ever feel up to it, I'll always be here to listen to the rest.  And, if not, that's all right.  I don't want you to feel like I'm pushing you.  I just want you to be comfortable with me.'

'I am comfortable with you.' Was the priest's reply, sincere and apologetic.  'I just wish I could be...  _more so_.'

'We'll get there.'  Robin reassured him, looping his hair around her finger, resting now with her ear against his heart.  She lay there with him, snaking one of her legs in-between his, locking them together, all the while waiting for the beat to calm down.

'You know what might help?'  She finally asked, biting her lip with a flirtatious little smirk.  'If maybe someday, not now, but someday... you tell me about all these _thoughts_  of yours.'

Libra laughed sheepishly, struggling to hold his wife's gaze from embarrassment.  'You really are quite incorrigible.  But... I will.'  He leaned over, kissing her forehead as she kept toying with his locks, doing his best to sound as confident as possible.  ' _After_ you tell me about our son.'


End file.
